WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stocks moved to the upside in early trading on Friday but quickly gave back ground and showed a lack of direction over the remainder of the trading session.
The major averages spent much of the day bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line before eventually closing modestly lower.
The Dow dipped 83.11 points or 0.2 percent to 49,359.33, the Nasdaq slipped 14.63 points or 0.1 percent to 23,515.39 and the S&P 500 edged down 4.46 points or 0.1 percent to 6,940.01.
For the tech-heavy Nasdaq slid by 0.7 percent, while the S&P 500 and the Dow fell by 0.4 percent and 0.3 percent, respectively.
The choppy trading on Wall Street came following remarks from President Doanld Trump suggesting National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett may not be his choice to become the next Federal Reserve chair.
'I see Kevin's in the audience, and I just want to thank you. You ?were fantastic on television today,' Trump said during at appearance at the White House. 'I actually want to keep you where you are, if you want to know the truth.'
Hassett had been seen as the frontrunner to replace Fed Chair Jerome Powell, whose term expires in May, but prediction markets now show former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh has surged into the lead following Trump's remarks.
The latest developments may have led to some uncertainty about Trump's pick for Fed chair and the outlook for interest rates.
Traders may also be reluctant to make significant moves as they keep an eye on rising geopolitical tensions around the world.
Trump's threats to take control of Greenland continue to attract attention, with the president suggesting he may impose tariffs on countries that don't go along with his plans for the territory.
Traders also continue to keep an eye on developments in Venezuela, political unrest in Iran and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.
In U.S. economic news, the Federal Reserve released a report showing industrial production grew by much more than expected in the month of December.
The Fed said industrial production climbed by 0.4 percent in December, matching an upwardly revised increase in November.
Economists had expected industrial production to inch up by 0.1 percent compared to the 0.2 percent uptick originally reported for the previous month.
Sector News
Most of the major sectors ended the day showing only modest moves, contributing to the lackluster close by the broader markets.
Considerable strength was visible among commercial real estate stocks, however, as reflected by the 1.2 percent gain posted by the Dow Jones U.S. Real Estate Index.
Semiconductor stocks also extended the rally seen during Thursday's session, driving the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index up by 1.2 percent to a record closing high.
On the other hand, steel stocks showed a notable move to the downside, with the NYSE Arca Steel Index falling by 1.2 percent after ending Thursday's trading at its best closing level in over seventeen years.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in another mixed performance on Friday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index and China's Shanghai Composite Index both dipped by 0.3 percent, while South Korea's Kospi advanced by 0.9 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets all moved to the downside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index slid by 0.7 percent, the German DAX Index slipped by 0.2 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index edged down by 0.1 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries have moved sharply lower over the course of the session. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, surged 7.1 basis points to a four-month closing high of 4.231 percent.
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